Artifice

My name is Matt DesJardins and I am a Chef. My passion for the culinary arts started in my childhood growing up in Greensboro, North Carolina. Constantly being surrounded by home cooked food and amazing restaurants really opened my eyes to the majesty of the culinary arts.

My mother had a home food delivery service that was called ‘Fit-to-Eat’. She made healthy meals for her clients as a personal trainer. Helping her in the kitchen when I was young helped guide my way into providing an intimate cooking experience for others. From there I went into a private arts academy in high school.

Over 10 years I developed my skills and passion for the culinary arts by working in all types of restaurants with many different cuisines. I worked myself up from Chef de Partie watching and learning from my mentors to running kitchens as Sous Chef. After years of working in the restaurant industry I wanted to get back to my roots and my initial dream of being an in-home private chef.

I was told once by a chef of mine that cooking is the most intimate and connecting experience you can give to somebody you’ve never met. Since then I have been driven to put positive energy and love into everything I create. I don’t just provide delicious food of all cuisines, I bring a warm, welcoming, and fun persona to the table that keeps people bringing me back again, and again.

My goal as a chef and artist is to create an unforgettable experience that brings family and friends together for times of celebration. It always fills me with excitement to bring what I have to offer. See you for dinner!

Just a little behind-the-scenes breakdown of the writing, meaning, and hidden treasures in the title track of my new album "The Hallowed Wide" - out on all streaming platforms now!

Anna Mooy Bio.

Mezzo-soprano Anna Mooy received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in voice from BYU, Provo, and did doctoral study at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, where she studied with Glenda Maurice. She has received many honors, including Regional Finalist for the Metropolitan Opera Auditions on two occasions. She has also performed with many of the world’s finest choral organizations including the Dale Warland Singers, VocalEsssence and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir; both as choral member and soloist. Performances with other organizations include the Minnesota Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the Utah Symphony, among many others. She has also been a judge for the the Metropolitan Opera District auditions in Utah and North Dakota. Active as a recitalist, she has performed widely through the Midwestern United States, as well as the Rocky Mountain West and Hawaii. She has been on the voice faculties of St. Olaf College, Bemidji State University, Brigham Young University, Provo, and BYU Hawaii.

Landon Maughan grew up in Salt Lake City and has spent the last two decades as a professional musician and artist living in Boise Idaho. He currently utilizes each side of his brain solving problems as an IT professional half of the week and playing in bands and indulging in various creative endeavors the other half of the week.

He plays guitar, bass, and keyboards in multiple bands and studio projects, is currently working on his 7th solo album, co-hosts an acoustic open-mic night every week through the summmer, and also hosts his own weekly podcast Brain Radio Podcast.

Jaclyn Wright is a multi-disciplinary artist and educator from the Midwest. She received her BA from Southern Illinois University and her MFA from Indiana University. Her work combines traditional analog photographic techniques with contemporary digital methods, performance, and installation. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and published widely. Recent exhibitions of her work include: SF Camerawork (San Francisco), Sabine Street Studios (Houston), SFO Museum (San Francisco), and the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (Salt Lake City). Her work has been included in the collections at The Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, IL. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Photography at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT.

Desarae Lee is a fine artist and illustrator from Salt Lake City, Utah. Her art has appeared in galleries and art shows across the US and she has won numerous awards for her work including Best of Show, Best Illustrator, and Featured Artist. She is a published author and illustrator and serves as a founding board member at Salt Lake City’s Downtown Artist Collective, where she can occasionally be found teaching drawing or printmaking.

Desarae’s technique revolves around using line to create value and texture. Working primarily with pen and ink, Desarae balances exact, meticulous line-work with natural, flowing compositions. Over time, her work has developed to include watercolor, tea staining, and printmaking. This shift results in more organic drawings that still maintain her original intricacy.

Influenced by personal trauma and struggles with depression and anxiety disorders, Desarae creates work that revolves around themes of finding humor in pain, beauty in the grotesque, and light in the darkness. As comfortable referencing geek culture as she is bearing the depths of her soul, Desarae’s work ranges in theme but is always, as she says, “an attempt to connect the hidden places in myself to the hidden places in the viewer, to somehow create a bridge of communication over the immense expanse of our differing perceptions, beliefs, and experiences.”

When she is not drawing or printing, Desarae can be found roaming the Rocky Mountains of Utah with her ever-patient partner Jared and her stubborn Schnauzer Boris.

http://desarae-lee.squarespace.com/

Becky Piatt Davidson is a former tenured Assistant Professor of English, a published author, a literary researcher, storyteller, and longtime meditation practitioner for whom meditation was a game-changer six years ago. She works at the intersection of story, music, and tech, creating hero’s journey meditation experiences for listeners who love her team’s combination of world-building and wisdom. Along with Caleb Loveless and Dane Holmes of Slowave Studios, Davidson is creating both a product and a practice aimed at helping Creatives embrace a new and novel form of meditation.

https://www.lotimus.com/home

Alan Michael Braufman (performing as Alan Braufman and Alan Michael);  is an American jazz saxophonist, flutist and composer.

He graduated from Boston’s Berklee College of Music in 1973, then moved to NYC where he and several other musicians occupied  a vacant building at 501 Canal Street in lower Manhattan. The building, where the total rent came to $140 for four floors, became a hub for musicians to practice and perform and its occupants played a seminal role in New York City's early-seventies loft jazz scene.

In 1975, Braufman's debut album Valley of Search was released on the India Navigation record label. The album was recorded live in the performance space at 501 Canal Street by Bob Cummins, the owner of India Navigation and was the label’s second release.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Braufman spent his time touring as a saxophonist with Carla Bley, The Psychedelic Furs and Philip Glass.In 1988, he released the album Lost In Asia on the Passport Jazz label. In 1995, he released the album As Daylight Fades.

 On June 29, 2018, a remastered version of Valley of Search was reissued on vinyl and digital formats, and earned him long-overdue recognition—complete with a triumphant, sold-out 2018 homecoming show at Brooklyn experimental music venue National Sawdust along and rave reviews in the new York times, pitchfork, and rolling stone.

 Alan released a brand new album The Fire Still Burns late in 2020. And he currently lives in Salt Lake City, UT where he performs regularly.

Drew Nichols is an artist who believes that challenge and delight lead us to joy. So far, that’s led him to write and play musical theatre. Going forward, he’s working on expanding systems and resources for narrative media, connecting creators more directly with collaborators and audiences.

https://www.drewcomposed.com/

Wesley Monahan eternalizes the timeless concept of being human through his quirky lyrics and thought-provoking themes driven by the ironic contrast between trauma and joy. His goal is to get audiences to ask themselves “What’s the point of growing up?” His current project, Suit Up, Solider, blends alternative rock and contemporary nostalgia through their recent debut album, “Curse The Day I Act My Age”.

“Death is an unintentional reoccurring theme throughout much of my work. I love hiding difficult topics in a peppy tune. Looking back I think it was a way for me to unearth my suppressed desire to be reborn into someone more authentically me.” In his spare time, Wesley is a performer, audio engineer, producer, and entrepreneur.

https://www.suitupsoldier.com/

https://www.facebook.com/suitupsoldier/

IG: @suitupsoldier_ @wesleymonahan